Roof covering



Jan. 21, 1930. c, J, McDAVlTT 1,744,655

ROOF COVERING Filed Feb. 18. 1924 Patented Jan. 21, 1930 UNITED STATES PAT NT OFF C means a. MCDAVITT, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS; ASSIGNOR iro rnn tnnon comm, or

CHICAGO, ILLINoIs, A CORPORATION :OF ILLINOIS ROOF COVERING Y Application filed l ebruary 1s, i924. Serial Kansans,

This invention relates to roofing, and one of the objects of the invention is the provision of a new and improved composition shingle that when applied to the roof will have its fastening means concealed and protected and will have the appearance of having a ma-.'

terially thickened lower portion.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a new and improved composition shingle that is arranged diagonally on the roof and is adapted to have only its upper and lower corners directly secured to the roof whereby the angle formed by the lower portions of two adjacent shingles constitutes a guide or gauge for positioning the adjacent overlapping shingle.

Still further objects of the invention are the provision of a new and improved shingle that may be applied with accuracy and facility and when applied will form a roof that.

is durable and efficient, that will not warp or turn up at the ends, and that is pleasing in appearance.

Other and further objects and advantages will appear from the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which Fig. 1 is an isometric perspective view of a portion of a roof showing the shingles in position thereon;

Fig. 2 is a plan view of a portion of a roof;

Fig. 3 is a bottom plan view of one of the shingles;

Fig. 4 is a section on line 4. 4 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is a plan view of one of the shingles used in the first course; and

Fig. 6 is a plan view of a slightly modified form of shingle.

0n the drawings the reference character 10 designates a portion of the sheeting of the roof 11 of any usual or well known construction. Thenumeral 12 designates a polygonal strip of composition roofing material of a convenient size to form a single shingle. As shown the shingle is substantially square and is adapted to be applied to the roof in such a manner that one of its diagonals will extend longitudinally of said roof. In other words, it is applied diagonally to the roof.

.in the construction of roofs in Order to avoid the flat, plain appearance of the same, it is desirable that the shingles be so constructed that the shades and shadows cast thereby'will relieve the monotonous appear ance of the roof and will render the same pleasing and ornamental. This is accomplished in -wooden'shingles by tapering the same, their lower ends being considerably thickened. In the present invention, the lower portions 13 of the shingles are given the appearance of being materially thickened by turning the corner 14 beneath the body portion, as shown in Figs. 2 and 3. This effect may be further heightened by arranging the loop or fold 15 so that it will extend above the plane of the shingle when the latter is applied to the roof.

Sharp bending of composite shingles, especially in cold weather, is likely to crack or break the shingle along the bending line. In'order to obviate this difiiculty the folding while the shingle is more or less plastic. The

corner 14 is folded back beneath the body portion of the shingle with the fold or bead 15 extending above the plane-of the shingle 12, forming an open loop, as clearly shown in Fig. 4. This will give the folded portion of the shingle the appearance of having considerable thickness'thereby relieving the flat or dead appearance of the roof. The bending operation may be accomplished'in any suitable manner, but preferably the shingle is creased as at 16 after which the corner is folded over the concave side of the crease.

It is understood, however, that the corner of the shingle may, if desired, be creased but not folded, as shown in Fig. 6, the folding being done in applying the shingle to the roof. The latter arrangement has an advantage in that the shingles are more easily packed or bundled for shipment. however, the disadvantage that in bending the material in cold weather it is likely to crack or break. The crease 16 will constitute an index for indicating the exact line along which the corner ofthe shingle is to be bent, and consequently no measurements are necessary by the workmen in applying the shingles. The same may, therefore, be applied with as It has, i

much ease and alacrity as in the former type.

In applying the form of individual shin 1e shown in Figs. 1 to 4, as for example, t e shingle E, Fig. 2, to the roof, the corner 14: is bent outward from the shingle, is then placed on the shingle C and slid to position in the angle formed by the lower edges of the shingles D, D, forming the adjacent lower row, after which the corner is nailed as at 17. The shingle is then folded over and the upper corner is secured to the sheeting or roof support 10 as shown at 18 in other similar shingles C and D. The upper corners of the shingles are attached to the roof not only to more firmly secure the same in position, but also for the purpose of preventing their being dislocated during the operation of layin the shingles of the next higher course. [1 e lower edges of the shingle when folded will overla the upper adjacent edges of the shingles Dflhthus securing the upper portion of these shingles in proper position on the roof.

After the second row of shingles B, B are applied, the shingles in the remaining rows are automatically properly positioned by fitting the folded corner in the angle formed by the lower edges of the shingles of the adjacent row, below. The shingle being firmly secured to the roof, as by being attached at both its upper and lower corners, there is no danger of dislocating it when the folded corner of the unattached shingle is slid into position in the angle formed by the two adjacent shingles, consequently no care need be taken in pushing, shoving or thrusting the lower corner of the unattached shingle into said angle. As a result, the shingles may be rapidly and accurately laid without marks, gauges or measurements and without the services of an expert. Furthermore, the accuracy of the length of the folded corners, or, in other words, the uniformity in folding the lower corners, insures accuracy in laying the roof, with the minimum amount of care and labor.

In applying a shingle in which the corner has not been folded as in the form shown in Fig. 6, the shingle is turned upside down and the corner 14 is thrust into position in the angle formed by two adjacent shlngles and nailed to the roof in the same manner as described above. The shingle is then bent over the corner 14; and its upper corner is nailed to the roof as indicated at 18 in the shingles D, see Fig. 2. The crease at 16. indicates the line on which the shingle Is to be folded, thus insuring accuracy in the foldin operation.

flinch shingle is secured only at its upper and lower corners and the securing means are protected from the weather and are arranged in lines substantially transverse to the roof.

' The fastening means at the lower corner of the shingle not only prevents warping of elevating the shngle, but also prevents the wind from the same. Moreover, the roll 15 permits the shingle to expand and contract without affecting the fastening means in any manner. The exposed surfaces of the shingles are each in the form of a hexagon which also adds to the appearance of the roof.

The shingles employed in the first row may be formed by folding each shingle alon the diagonal line, as at 19, see Fi 5, an are adapted to be attached by securing the lower portion only to the roof whereby the upper portion will protect the fastening means as indicated at 20 in Fig. 2.

It is thought from the foregoing taken in connection with the accompanying drawings that the construction and operation of my device will be apparent to those skilled in the art, and that various changes in size, shape, proportion and details of construction may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

I claim as my invention:

1. A method of finishing polygonal shingles which consists in forming a crease across one corner of the shingle with the convex surface of said crease extending above the face of the shingle destined to be exposed, and then bending said corner substantially parallel with and adjacent to the body of the shingle on the opposite side of the same from said crease.

2. A composition shingle comprising a polygonal body portion having a crease across one of its corners, said corner being return bent to form a curved open loop extending laterally beyond one of the faces of said shingle, the return bent portion of the corner being substantially parallel with and CHARLES J. McDAVITT. 

